Faded Flower
by MixedBreedMaiya
Summary: Millennia of exile and isolation; a forgotten Spirit finally shares her story, for whomever might strain to listen. *This is a collection of oneshots/scenes about my own original character, unfolding her background and story little by little through standalone, but connected, snippets of prose.


Hello, everyone! Thank you for taking the time to look at my new fanfiction project! I just have a few things to explain before we begin, okay? n.n

Raine: ...I'm...not in this one...

Heehee. That's true, Raine. You sound disappointed!

Raine: Hardly. I'm just..._stunned_...

Yeah, yeah, okay.

Raine: I am absolutely shocked.

...Yes Raine.

Raine: And Regal's not even in it!

Alright, Raine, shut up. So! This will be a collection of ToS oneshots and scenes (this is NOT a typical chapter fic; each "chapter" is a standalone while still being connected), in a particular style, about the OC I've had for about eight years, the Island Summon Spirit, Poison Ivy. And no, she has nothing to do with comics and superheroes. I didn't even know there was a villain with that handle until someone happened to mention it, so. No. xD I really love her, though, and she's developed so wonderfully; her story captivates me, and I'm finally going to introduce her to the world after letting her sit in obscurity for nearly a decade.

Raine: Oh, _her_.

Yeah, I know you two don't get along at all, but suck it up. You don't have to talk to her in this collection. So, I don't own Tales of Symphonia, but I do own the entirety of Ivy's quirky character, and I really hope that you all like this and watch her story unfold!

* * *

_I am the petals blown loose by the wind, carried over oceans and fields, until no one can say when or where their journey began. I am the unsigned letter set adrift in the sea,, timeless, mysterious, forgotten. I am the sweet, green scent of life grown faint through fathomless time and distance. You know not my name, nor ever will learn it. You recall not my face, nor ever will see it. Once I walked among my brothers, my sisters, and we stood then as friends, you and I—but you stepped forward through ages, and I was chained to a single moment._

_I am the name no one speaks. You have shaken the memory of me, but by that day I am bound for the rest of cruel Eternity._

"Deadly Flower. Poison Ivy. For your transgression, in the name of this world and the power of stewardship with which we are entrusted, I hereby pronounce you exiled to this island. You are confined to these shores you claim as your own, never to leave of your own volition or that of any other being, mortal or Spirit. You are part of Symphonia no longer, and eternal solitude will be your punishment."

Everything on the island seemed to fall into a clinging, stifling silence. She found herself stalled. He had been angry, yes; he had disproved, _yes_, but… An exile? Damned to existence on the outside? "Wh…" she breathed. That was unheard of; it had never happened before, and surely it could not be happening now. Because of _this_. Her head shook slowly, vaguely, in disbelief. "You can't be serious. I saved his life… I _saved _his _life_!"

"You violated our laws."

"Our _laws _are to protect this world and the people _on_ it—"

"When we are called upon by a pact-maker with whom we hold a solemn agreement. We do not interfere in the affairs of mortal beings when the whim seizes us."

She almost felt like that half-elf, surrounded by enemies, people who wanted her punished and others who just didn't want to prevent it. The rest of them hovered about in a semi-circle behind Origin, all quiet. All standing by, watching this injustice, as she was being told she should have done. Her eyes shifted among the ten of them: Luna, face turned and eyes closed as Aska curled about her; Shadow, impassive, unreadable; Gnome, shifting about, poking the dirt with that stupid spade; the Sylph, exchanging glances with one another and trying hard not to meet hers; Volt, glowering as if to back their fearless king; Undine regarding her with soft pity; Celsius, her arms folded, sulkily scowling into the ocean; Efreet, shaking his great head. Even Maxwell, the one among them for whom she might have hadhope, just rubbed at his head. He kept glancing at Origin from the corner of his eye—but the Lord of Summon Spirits never so much as blinked at her. Two arms were folded across his broad chest while the others rested sedately at his side. Indignation, anger burned in her. But there was shame, too; shame, because in that glare there was an echo of what had happened so long ago. She drew one hand slowly into a tight fist.

No one was going to help her. All of them were just going to let this happen. "I did what was right," she finally growled, staring fiercely at the ground through her bangs. "All of you know it. Every one of you knows why we established this system of pacts and vows, and it was—"

"To create order," Origin interrupted again, his tone hard. "When we neglect our responsibilities—"

"Our responsibilities?!" shrieked Ivy, actually stepping backward as she flung her arms out. There was a ripple of surprise through the gathering, but the heavy silence stood. "What do you know about responsibilities? You stand there telling me that my _responsibility _was to let that man die despite his innocence!" Her voice had risen in pitch, and the expression she wore was indignant, but pleading. Imploring. Could they really not see?

"Because it was!" One free arm lifted to point a single finger at her. "You forgot your place in the system established at the dawn of time and in doing so invited anarchy."

She released a harsh, mirthless bark of laughter, pacing a step or two to each side in restless agitation. "It was a harmless man condemned to death like a rabid dog! He's not going to go topple dynasties, or…or change the course of _history_—"

"You do not know _what _he will do, because there is no pact, no acknowledged vow, to constrain your power and his intentions alike."

"Then bring him here and have him recite a vow for you like a good little summoner. I will bind my power to him, because unlike you, I trust him."

"You are erratic and unpredictable, Ivy, and I can no longer tolerate such a variable. You and I both know that you will never form another pact. You are incapable of 'trust.'" His face was cool, even icy; hers burned with his words.

"That has nothing to do with it," she growled.

"Does it not? Is this not your misguided manner of seeking redemption?"

She clenched her fists and her jaw; one heel dug down into the sand, and a rustling from the trees behind her broke the silence. Several of the others glanced warily toward the noise, but she held Origin's stony gaze. "Stop it."

"The decision is made, and it is final. I am sorry."

Another harsh scoff came from deep in her throat. "Are you, now?" Shaking her head again, she passed her gaze from the king to his indolent subjects. "He can't do this. Tell him he can't do this. Celsius—tell him." The Disciple sent a fleeting glance her way, but she almost savagely turned her back and vanished. "Efreet?" Gone. Shadow, Volt—one by one they winked out of sight until only Origin, Maxwell, and Undine remained. It was to the latter that she turned. "Undine? You know I was right…you _know _I was right!" she pleaded.

The Maiden closed her eyes. "…Actions may be motivated by the correct intentions," she murmured, "but that does not make the actions themselves correct. I agree with Origin." And with that, she, too, was gone.

"They won't budge on this'n, girly, none of 'em." Maxwell finally spoke while she stared at Undine's empty place. Those betrayed eyes shifted slowly toward him. "They can't."

Yes they could. All of them could. All it took was standing up, just seeing what was wrong and _fixing _it! Hadn't all of them done that before? Hadn't that been interference, too? No one had asked them to do it, but they had! What made this so different? All of these questions played over her face as she stared at her old friend.

"Maxwell." Origin turned to the Old Man. "Speak with your Summoner, sparsely, of what has happened. Do not mention Ivy. Her name must from this moment be erased from mortal awareness. We may yet be called upon to correct this error."

There they were, the two authorities of the Spirit world, speaking of her, in front of her, as though she had ceased to be. She felt as though her legs were going to give out—as though she were a mortal herself, and not a Summon Spirit after all. She stood, though, not blinking, not moving. Just staring at Origin after Maxwell had left.

"…You can't do this," she repeated in a whisper. "I won't…I won't form another pact. I won't…interfere, I won't get involved, I won't even speak to anyone, but you can't…chain me here."

He tilted his chin up a bit. "This is the only way to ensure that everything you just said will remain true. I cannot suffer you to run wild any longer."

She squeezed her eyes shut and spread her rigid fingers with a sharp gesture. Vines that had been slithering from the forest toward her feet halted at once, but the glare she then shot at him would cut better than the cruelest thorn. "If She were still here, you wouldn't be sitting on that throne of yours, and you wouldn't be saying any of this. If this had happened to you back then, what would you have done?" Steadily, her voice began to rise and quiver with rage. "If you didn't have this god complex, if you were one of _us _again…" She shook violently, and one vine coiled around her leg.

His eyes narrowed, but he said nothing. As she raised both arms and shot the remaining thorny arms at him, he vanished in a flash—and she did drop to her knees. Her face to the sky and fists planted against the sand, her final question startled a flock of birds from a nearby tree into flight.

"_What would you have done_?!"

* * *

Raine: So that's where it all started.

Yep! Going to cut her a little more slack now?

Raine: No. She's insane.

...Well, I'm still working on Raine, but I hope at least some of you readers like this first installment! Thanks for reading!


End file.
